Having more than one dog can make life easier in some ways and harder in some ways. The best case scenario is they spend a lot of time together and help provide enrichment for one another. The worst case scenario is when they don’t get along at all and will fight anytime they’re together.
This blog post focuses on the best ways to work on training when you have a multi-dog household. Let’s dive in.
The first thing you’ll want to do is figure out what your training goal is. What do you actually want to happen? Is it for your dogs to walk without pulling? Is it for them to stop barking out of the window? Whatever it is, know that it’s likely going to take lots of steps to achieve the goal. And compared to having one dog, it’s likely going to take 3 times as long.
The training process in most cases involves separating the dogs and working with one at a time. This allows you to build the behavior and make sure it’s successful without the distraction of another dog. When both dogs can accomplish that step individually, you’re ready to bring them together and teach it again. You’ll likely notice a lack of patience at first, but it should only take a few minutes before you’re able to get them both to do it with one another present. You can teach one step at a time and then bring them together or teach multiple steps and then bring them together. Either way is fine.
One problem that some face is the dog that isn’t being worked with can become frustrated and make a lot of noise. To reduce the chances of this, try giving a special chew that they never get. And if that doesn’t work, try giving that chew while there is only a gate separating everyone. That way the dog that isn’t involved in the training can still feel like they are.
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